Dear God, Are angels, demons and Satan real, and if so what role do they play in my life?

A Spiritual Battle is going on and it's all about you!

Earth, God's creation was invaded by Satan and his followers when they were kicked out of Heaven. See Revelations 12:7-12

It is written, Satan, the deceiver and tempter of the world, prowls earth to devour God's children. Satan is out to break the bonds of communion between God and man however he can. There is a conflict between Good and Evil and Angels and Demons in this world. This conflict is based on God and Satan's desires to increase their Kingdom on this earth.

But God gave the world a Victor in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He has already defeated Satan and his power over death.

1 John 2:14 - Fathers, I'm writing to you because you have known the One who is from the beginning. Young people, I'm writing to you because you are strong. God's word lives in you. You have won the battle over the evil one.

Through our Divine Champion, we have the Holy Spirit to give us what we need for the fight, and we have God who sends his agents (angels) to help. The Bible records angels all through its history helping mankind. They delivered news, messages, warnings, as well as help and guidance. See: Genesis 19, Job 1: 6, Daniel 8:16, Matthew 26:53, Mark 13:27 ,Luke 4:10, Revelation 22:8&9.

Does all this play a role in our life? I think, we are right in the middle of this struggle. We have the choice of living in sin or righteousness, to live for good or evil, to have life or death, to be in eternity with God or Satan. We can know the Victor of this battle. It is God and he wants us to be a part of His Kingdom here on earth.

Enter the battle and seek people for God's Kingdom. God will reward his faithful servants for a job well done.

Romans 16:20 - The God who gives peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.

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What is spiritual warfare? I think of angels and demons and how their battle affects humans.

Matthew 13:49 the angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous.

Angels were used to warn Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19:1 and there are many other times in the Bible where angels were God's messengers or protectors to humans.

Read Hebrews 1:14

God created angels to be his servants, just like He created us to be his servants. See 1 Peter 3:22 This leads me to think of Satan and how he was an angel and wanted equal power with God Remember that Satan knows our human nature and weaknesses, he and his demons are not all knowing.(1 Peter 1:11-12). Therefore we need to read Ephesians 6:11-13 and apply it daily. Paul warned people in 2 Corinthians 11:14-15 of Satan's lure and persuasion.

Cling to James 4:1 "Resist the devil and he will flee from you." And John 16:30 "Be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." These verses should help us remember to trust in Him and surrender to Him to overcome Satan, the secular world and our own sinful nature.

An interesting fact is that God and his angels outnumber Satan and his demons two to one.

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There are many references of angels, demons, and the devil in the Bible. The Bible states that the devil was a fallen angel and he opposed God. The Bible first mentions the devil in Genesis, chapter 3. Angels are also first mentioned in Genesis, chapter 19; angels are sent by God to be messengers, warriors, and protectors. The New Testament mentions demons (Matthew chapters 4 & 8). Demons appear to be fallen angels who oppose God and God's people. God promises to ultimately defeat Satan in Genesis chapter 3. Jesus constantly battled the Devil (Matthew 4, John 13) and demons (Luke 4, Mark 3).

There are daily reminders of Satan's work; shootings, robberies, murders, hurting children, substance abuse, war, and the list goes on. The Bible speaks of Jesus casting demons out of people, which got me thinking...does Jesus actually "reach" into a person and literally snatch the demon out? Thinking back on my life before I accepted Jesus, I wonder if I was demon possessed. Although I didn't do any of the things mentioned above, I did rebel against God. My life was devoid of Jesus. When I decided to enter into a relationship with Jesus, I became a new creature (2 Cor. 5:17). When Jesus entered into my life, there was no room for the demons. This is not to say that I am perfect, but I have felt the love of God; so although Satan tries constantly to tempt me, I know that I am protected by Jesus. I know that there are angels watching over me. I know this is true because I have experienced Satan. He is real; his demons are real. If demons exist, I believe that angels exist, and that they help in my personal battles with the devil. There is a constant battle, one that Jesus knew and experienced. The battle continues to this day. The decision to defeat Satan comes when we accept Christ. God promises that the devil will be defeated. He defeated the devil that ruled my life. He wins the battles one at a time. Demons, Satan, and Angels are real. Which do you chose to help you fight your battles?

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There are many references of angels, demons, and the devil in the Bible. The Bible states that the devil was a fallen angel and he opposed God. The Bible first mentions the devil in Genesis, chapter 3. Angels are also first mentioned in Genesis, chapter 19; angels are sent by God to be messengers, warriors, and protectors. The New Testament mentions demons (Matthew chapters 4 & 8). Demons appear to be fallen angels who oppose God and God's people. God promises to ultimately defeat Satan in Genesis chapter 3. Jesus constantly battled the Devil (Matthew 4, John 13) and demons (Luke 4, Mark 3).

There are daily reminders of Satan's work; shootings, robberies, murders, hurting children, substance abuse, war, and the list goes on. The Bible speaks of Jesus casting demons out of people, which got me thinking...does Jesus actually "reach" into a person and literally snatch the demon out? Thinking back on my life before I accepted Jesus, I wonder if I was demon possessed. Although I didn't do any of the things mentioned above, I did rebel against God. My life was devoid of Jesus. When I decided to enter into a relationship with Jesus, I became a new creature (2 Cor. 5:17). When Jesus entered into my life, there was no room for the demons. This is not to say that I am perfect, but I have felt the love of God; so although Satan tries constantly to tempt me, I know that I am protected by Jesus. I know that there are angels watching over me. I know this is true because I have experienced Satan. He is real; his demons are real. If demons exist, I believe that angels exist, and that they help in my personal battles with the devil. There is a constant battle, one that Jesus knew and experienced. The battle continues to this day. The decision to defeat Satan comes when we accept Christ. God promises that the devil will be defeated. He defeated the devil that ruled my life. He wins the battles one at a time. Demons, Satan, and Angels are real. Which do you chose to help you fight your battles?

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Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. (Ephesians 6:10-13)

These verses remind us that there are spiritual powers at work around us. These dark forces are those thoughts and circumstances that battle against God and try to take the place of God. Sometimes these "forces" are birthed in the sinful ambitions of others who wish to get ahead, placing themselves above us and above God. Sometimes they are our own sinful thoughts.

God always provides us with a way to overcome these evil schemes. If we hold to Him through our relationship (praying, reading our bible, loving others as He demonstrated through Jesus Christ), He will never fail us and will guard both our hearts and our minds.

Do I ever see any of those little demons and devils running around like we see at Halloween? No, I can't say that I have seen them physically. But I have felt their presence in situations where I knew I needed to make a choice: I could choose to either stay where I was at and fight on my own, or to ask God to help me through the struggle I was about to face. I believe the devil tries to lure me into thinking that I am strong enough to handle tough situations on my own... "why ask God for help, you can do this." But this is one of his tricks to draw me away from God.

These scriptures tell us that the day of evil will come. By then, it may be too late put on our armor unless we've been practicing how to put it on. Practice putting on the full armor of God this week as you see the reminders in the Halloween displays around you. Pray that God will protect you when the day of evil comes. Cling to Him and have faith in His promises to protect you.

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"...Be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but...against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." (Ephesians 6:10-12)

I believe that angels and demons are real, just as the evidence of their existence are shown by the good and evil around us. In the past, I did not want to believe in something called "spiritual warfare" because it sounded so weird and extreme. I never wanted to acknowledge the fact that as followers of Christ we are being targeted by Satan because we are a real threat to his plans for the universe. That all sounded too scary and too much like the religious extremism that I had tried so hard to avoid. A point came in my life, though, when I was struggling with something that manifested itself in every facet of my life. Spiritual warfare, I came to understand, is very real.

What I have only recently realized is that once I believed in the enemy, I let him win by becoming captive to fear. I constantly thought about how he would attack me next, how whatever I was feeling has been the result of some spiritual attack, and how I was a very specific target for him as he plots his schemes for the world. I see now that I was, in a sense, a victim of spiritual terrorism. Just as some Americans have become enslaved to fear by the terrorism of Al Qaeda, I was held in chains by fear. Constantly worrying and never embracing the freedom that I have. Always wondering when the next attack will come. Never thinking about how I have someone out there fighting for me so that I don't have to. I didn't see that by simply allowing myself to be crippled by fear, I was letting the enemy succeed. My spiritual paralysis was exactly what he wanted.

We as Christians don't have to live in fear of demons and Satan's tricks. We don't have to be scared because we're free, and if we are following Christ we are empowered by His Spirit and cannot be touched. While awareness of the enemy is good, fear is unnecessary. The battle has been won, and all that is left is for us to claim it with the faith and authority we have in Jesus Christ.

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